The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1887-07-28
MISS LooKABoUT



D1sesuragsd In Her search for Profes
siosal Beauties.
A big picture Of . rapturous maiden
!. caught my eye on the outward wall Of .
museum in the Bowery. She sat in .
high chair before piano. She was play
Ing the instrument with her toes. A pair
Of nice little feet were thrust out upon
~ keyboard In manner as bewitching
. Il was unconventional. I paid ten
cents and went right in. OF course It
did mot 10 much matter to me, but when
! saw the poor, deluded men gaze upon
The sad reality pitied them. The woman
was forty, scraggy, deformed and plain
iA%sd. Her dress covered her ankles,
and black stockings almost covered her
feet. Only the toes were bare. And
such toesl Big by nature, distorted by
use, and altogether unenchanting. Thus,
from Langtry down to this curiosity Of
the museum, have been disappointed in
my quest Of professional beauty. How
ever, there 10 plenty Of 1t in the streets,
wearing good clothes and free to look at
without paying cent.
The brightly dsubed banners on the
front of another museum glared upon my
escort and me the information that com.
petitive show of African beauty, price
one dime, was going on inside. 1t did
1ot seem to me that we would fail to get
the worth of twenty cents and twenty
minutes, 30 we entered, and were dis
appointed, of course. But not in the way
you probably imagine. The expenditure
ef time and money did not bring even
their small value in something to ridicule.
The exhibits were not funny enough
70 raise smile. There was q row Of
them on the platform-perhaps fifteen
together. Not one was grotesque, only
three or four were plain-most of the re-
mainder were pretty, and several were
positively beautiful. The curious fact,
however. was the absence of the negro
type. The hles ranged from the yel-
lowish white Of the octoroon to the sooty
black~0f the pure-blooded African; but
no'6ose was fat, and no lips thicker than
IS slight pout. In short, the Snowman
was swindler In hanging out the sign:
'Grand Exhibition Of Negro Beauties"
A girl is pretty badly off who has not
something to be proud Of, If 1t is no
more than . hand or foot. l know one
who 10 tolerably happy over q simple
dimple. Speaking of showing of beauty,
I read an advertisement of q show of
beautiful women at Broadway museum,
: and went to see it. After viewing the
usual array of fats, leans, longs, shorts
and other freaks of nature, came across
row of sixteen women.
"Are these curiosities, too?" asked.
"Curiosities yes, the lecturer re-
piled; wonders, marvels, astounding
specimens of natures exquisite crea-
hons. These are prize beauties"
"Good gracious p | exclaimed, "where
did you get themf Were they engaged
for monstrosities, and lack Just shadow
of the necessary hideousness? Is this
one here the grandmother of that one
over there? Is yonder object a wax
figure that has been accidentally left near
the fire, and got melted so she will not
answer for the murdered girl of Railway?
You don't mean to say that they're all
alive, and no clock-work and. oh dear,
dear, you really wouldn't let this one
smile II you considered how dreadful she
looks doing it,"
Twas not trying to be funny belong to
the impressionist school, and was simply
uttering the thoughts that spontaneously
welled up within me. To get right down
70 the bedrock of truth, may say that
not solitary one of the sixteen was even
pretty, and most of them were positively
ugly. The whole show looked like big
Joke, but some who had paid their quar-
ters did not laugh at it.
There are thousands of respectable
New Workers who like to ameliorate the
ills of hot weather with beer and music.
The proprietor of large uptown garden
10 making curious effort to give them
ing them to the elbowing of bad folks.
The stranger who presents himself at the
entrance is informed that tickets are not
TO be bought, and that he can't get in
without one. Formality is not carried
to the point Of excluding him, however,
s or the woman whom he may have brought,
unless the doorkeeper dislikes the looks
Of him. He 10 told that he can secure q
season ticket. His name and address are
taken down In big book, and the blanks
n card filled out with show of care
ful precision. Thus he is qualified to 20
in with any party for whom he is willing
70 vouch, and buy all the beer he has any
nee for. And this red tape really means
1 something. A detective is engaged to
look into the personal concerns Of fire.
quenters whose conduct srouses his sus-
picion, and II the investigation goes
against them they find the door shut to
s them the next time they come. This
garden b especially resort for German
Hebrews, and the evening gathering
which saw did not number less than
1000 men, women and children.
Some Of the girls were exponents of
the very latest fashions in faces as well
- clothes. One with singulsrly arched
eyebrows attracted my attention, and, -
her hair was pulled back hard from her
forehead, ] guessed that the taut skin was
responsible for this popularity.
You're wrong, entirely" taid my
companion; 'she's wearing what the
girls call surprised eyebrows. It's done
With touch or two Of black pigment.
That's going to be the rage this sum-
Ner."
It was In this garden that I witnessed
the disturbance of Q German father. I
describe him q father because, while
: slaWes telling his two companions, over
41ening nngs, that he had been cent out
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